5 Great Linux Music Player Daemon Clients

Music Player Daemon is a server-side music playing application which means it can be controlled over a network or locally using desktop apps. I've covered MPD before and I thought I'd expand on it since I have recently rediscovered how useful it really is. I like how you can control it from anywhere, the desktop, web, phone etc, and it has gapless playback and light resource usage. There's a massive amount of clients to control MPD, these are my favourites: (although some of these are essentially platform independent, I've focused on those that work on/with Linux)


Ario

My favourite desktop client is Ario, which runs on various UNIX/Linux desktops, and also Mac (using Fink) and Windows. It can find covers in the directory, amazon or Last.fm and can also 'scrobble' tracks to Last.fm too, though I usually use a server-based scrobbler such as mpdscrobble. It has a nice tray icon for controls and I find it the most usable of the desktop clients.






















Client 175

Client 175 is a browser based client that looks and acts like a desktop one. Make sure you have python-json installed and then download the latest Client175, then extract it (I used ~/home/carl/apps/client175) then you can run it from the command line with "python ~/apps/client175/server.py" (without the qoutes, obviously). To make it run as soon as my computer logs in, I added that command to Gnome's Startup Applications (System, Preferences), though there is a more complicated, proper way to do that here.






















PhpMpReloaded

PhpMpReloaded is essentially a collection of basic web clients in one package and can be especially useful for browsing on basic low resource web browsers.























Maemo Music Player Client

MMPC is a version of the Gnome Music Player Client, with a focus on maximising screen usage and touchscreen usability. I have it running on my Nokia N800:























BitMPC

BitMPC is the only client that I cannot try myself at the moment since I don't have an Android device to try it on (donations welcome!) but I thought I'd include it anyway since I know many Android users who would find it useful. Also worth a try is PMix.

Classic Computers In Only Fools And Horses Episodes

I've recently started watching the entire Only Fools And Horses box set from beginning to end. Not only is it a brilliant sitcom but it also often captures the time it was made very well, such as in the Yuppy era of the late 80s. I've watched them many times but have only now started spotting all the old computers and tech.

In the 1987 Christmas special, "A Frog's Legacy", Del Boy has a consignment of hooky computers, badged Raja 2000 but actually BBC Model B's a BBC Master in a 3rd party Viglen case, (thanks to Andy Taylor for the info) Del flogs one to a vicar.








































In 'Yuppy Love' (1989), Rodney goes on a computer Diploma course and here he's using an Amstrad cpc 6128, with green screen, the "best 8 bit computer ever!" according to Andy Taylor of Retro Computers, who kindly identified it for me.






















Rodney eventually gets a job working for Cassandra's dad, Alan, in an office. In "The Jolly Boys Outing", Rodney's having a bit of trouble with his Apple SE/30, Apple Macintosh SE (thanks David), he keeps wiping out his spreadsheets! Both he and his colleague (played by Alan Hunter, who is now Max Branning in Eastenders) both have SE/30's on their desks.




























































I will keep updating this post when I spot more old computers in later episodes.